W. Harold Arnold, Jr. died at his home in Charleston on Saturday, December 12, 2020. He was 79. Mr. Arnold was the retired owner of Sentry Buick-GMC automobile dealership in Charleston, a business that he owned and operated for 29 years. A native of Greenville, S.C., Harold was the son of the late W. Harold “Bevo” Arnold and Lucy Furman Arnold. He graduated from Darlington School in Rome, Georgia and received a Bachelor of Science in Political Science from The Citadel, class of 1963. Harold married Martha Ann Peden, also a Greenville native. He served in the U.S. Air Force for four years, stationed in the Azores, where he achieved the rank of Captain. Harold and Martha Ann enjoyed 57 years of marriage and have two children, W. Harold Arnold III and Anne de Saussure Arnold, as well as two grandchildren W. Harold Arnold IV and Peden Richards Arnold and his daughter-in-law, Julia, all of Charleston. He is also survived by his sister, Caroline Arnold Davis of Nashville, and two nieces, Pyper Davis of Washington, D.C. and Lucy Davis Haynes of Nashville. Harold began his business career in Greenville, S.C. at Fairway Ford. During his professional career, Harold managed and owned several automobile dealerships, the last in Charleston, Sentry Buick-Pontiac-GMC. He retired, selling his General Motors dealership in 2013. During his professional career, Harold was active in many professional and civic organizations, including the South Carolina Automobile Dealers Association, of which he was a former Board Member. He was former President of the New Car Dealership Associations of Greenville and of Charleston, and he served as Mediator and Arbitrator on the General Motors Mediator and Arbitrator Boards. He was a member of the GM National Product Committee. Harold was a member of and served on numerous civic and social organization boards, including the YMCA, Camp Greenville, The Citadel Athletic Board, The Citadel Mentor Assistance Board, Trident 100 Commission, Trident Academy, the Greenville Chamber of Commerce, the Charleston Chamber of Commerce, the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce, the American Red Cross, and the United Way organizations of Greenville and Charleston. In Greenville, Harold was a member of the Cotillion Club, the Country Club of Greenville, the Poinsett Club; and he was President of Beaux Arts and a Board Member and President of the Piedmont Citadel Club. In Charleston, Harold was a member of First (Scots) Presbyterian Church, the Carolina Yacht Club, Charleston Country Club, Life Member of the Citadel Alumni Association, Star of the West Society, Kappa Alpha Order, the Saint Andrew’s Society of Upper South Carolina, Sons of the American Revolution, the Society of Colonial Wars and the Hereditary Order of the Descendants of Colonial Governors. In addition, he had a passion for race car driving, hunting, fishing, and golf. Harold was a creative and talented woodworker, pilot, musician, avid reader, and a student of history. A private graveside service will be held in Greenville at 2:00 o’clock p.m. on Monday, December 21, 2020 at the Arnold family plot in Springwood Cemetery. A memorial service will be announced at a later date upon the expiration of the COVID Pandemic sequestration. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that any donations be made to the Lustgarten Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research or to First (Scots) Presbyterian Church of Charleston.
Posted in: Post and Courier
Posted on: 2020-12-17
Link to original obituary: https://obits.postandcourier.com/us/obituaries/charleston/name/w-arnold-obituary?pid=197316259